Nas - Another Black Girl Lost

Black Girl Lost, a joint off Nas’ classic sophomore set, found the rap icon calling upon African-American women to raise their consciousness and respect themselves, rather than falling into superficial and self-destructive patterns of behavior. Fast-forward nearly 16 years, and it hasn’t gotten any easier for a black woman to navigate life’s troubled waters (if anything, it may be the opposite); thus, the Queensbridge repper’s returned for a second round of social commentary on aptly-titled non-album cut Another Black Girl Lost. This time around, the artist hones in on the issue of promiscuity among women of color, painting a portrait of a girl whose lack of self-esteem leads her to rush into bed—and, on multiple occasions, marriage—with men who don’t appreciate her for the diamond in the rough that she is. While the criticisms he delivers over Hit-Boy‘s string-laced sample work are pointed, the emcee makes clear that his words are motivated by love: “Sick society, blaming yourself so wrong / I highly respect you, bet that, strong, intelligent / This song ain’t to poke fun of you, to get laughs.” This joint isn’t attached to the project, but fans can look forward to more bangers (including currently-charting single The Don) on Nas’ yet-unscheduled 10th album, Life Is Good.